If the first four hundred and forty five pages of this very slow burning horror novel had been as action packed and horrific as the last seventy four, it would have been an exceptional novel of the genre. Unfortunately, they were not. It just took too long to get to its spectacular and truly bloody climax. If you can wait for the payoff and you think it's worth it, by all means, give it a read. However, for me, the payoff took far too long to materialize and the long, painful wait, was just not worth it.